Star Crossed
Jul 30, 2002 -
© Paul F. McDonald
Yet in other stories, lovers do not find their way to each other so easily. Sometimes, they have to endure all kinds of hardships and even defy death. The separation many of them face often only serves to bring them closer together. For Anakin and Padme, the journey is never easy. In fact, the two young lovers initially refuse the call, feeling that even if they opened their private hearts, their public lives would be destroyed. They are held apart by a societal wall of Thou Shalt Nots, by institutions both secular and religious, and do not come together until the end. So is it with the story of two beautiful youths named Pyramus and Thisbe who live in the city of Babylon. They are both madly in love with one another, but a literal wall separating their adjoining houses keeps them apart. All they can do is whisper to each other through a tiny hole. They eventually decide to run away together, and meet under a mulberry tree by a well-known tomb. Fate has other ideas, however, and when Pyramus makes his way there, he sees a lioness tearing apart a piece of Thisbe's robe. The girl has managed to get away, but he doesn't know that, so he kills himself. Thisbe eventually comes back, finds his body, and does the same. Perhaps the piece of cloth that the nexu in the arena tears off Padme is an allusion to this. At any rate, it is commonly believed that the gods allow Pyramus and Thisbe to be reunited in eternity, and hopefully Anakin and Padme will find each other once again in the Force. There are also many trips to the underworld in ancient myths, where lovers have to go in search for one another. One of the more well-known quests involves Orpheus the musician, whose wife Eurydice has been taken to Hades. His music can charm anyone, mortal and immortal alike, and with it he makes his way past all the guardians of the underworld. He is finally allowed to take his wife up to the land of the living, but only if he doesn't look back at her before they make it to the surface. The two have almost made it up, but Orpheus is overcome with desire and anxiety and has to look back. When he does, Eurydice vanishes. Like Orpheus, everyone knows that Anakin has a very hard time letting
The copyright of the article Star Crossed in Star Wars is owned by Paul F. McDonald. Permission to republish Star Crossed in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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